Reversing the Milky Way

After listening, Bai Cheng smiled awkwardly and said, "This is just a rumor from the outside world; you can't believe it."

"Come, come, Brother Bai Cheng, let me introduce you to our Renhui Academy," she said, leading Bai Cheng inside.

Then, Lü Liang began to explain: "Our class is divided into herbalism, body tempering, and forging. Herbalism involves identification, harvesting, and cultivation. Body tempering involves training and combat. Forging involves identifying ores, smelting ores, and then forging. On the other side, there are mainly literature, geography, and most other subjects unrelated to cultivation. Of course, they can also come here to practice body tempering."

Bai Cheng nodded after listening, surprised that it was so free here. Then, Bai Cheng suddenly remembered an important question and asked, "When do we graduate?"

After hearing this, Lü Liang immediately responded, "That's a good question. For body-refining students, the cycle is monthly. If they don't want to come anymore, they can tell their instructor, and they won't have to come the following month. After all, everyone's talent is different. Some people can advance here in three months, while others need half a year. So this policy is in place to solve this problem."

Bai Cheng nodded after hearing this, "I see."

Then, Lü Liang continued, "However, the most important point is that as long as you reach the Great Perfection of Body Refinement here, you can directly undergo a physique test. If you pass, the academy can directly write a letter of introduction to the cultivation academy or cultivation sect."

Bai Cheng was also somewhat surprised after hearing this: "Cultivation...Academy?"

“That’s right. You should know that cultivation academies and sects generally don’t recruit people openly. Every year, they send people to various schools to recruit people with cultivation physiques. These people are all introduced by the school dean through letters of introduction. If ordinary people want to enter these sects or cultivation academies, they must pay for their own physique test and then pass the entrance test before they can enter.”

After listening to Lü Liang's words, Bai Cheng suddenly realized: "So, reaching the Great Perfection of Body Refinement Realm in the academy and then passing the physique test is equivalent to being admitted to university without taking the entrance exam?"

After listening to Bai Cheng's explanation, Lü Liang nodded and said, "Yes...that's exactly what I mean."

After listening, Bai Cheng also began to ponder. His original plan was to learn about the place first, and then drop out of school to focus on cultivation once he had a good understanding. According to Lü Liang, he needed to change his strategy. Since reaching the Great Perfection of Body Refinement in the academy would grant him an internal recommendation, he should at least have his name registered in the academy.

With that in mind, Bai Cheng began his first day of school after transmigrating.

This morning happened to be the Body Refinement class. At this moment, hundreds of Body Refinement students were lined up in the schoolyard. There were more men than women. The students were divided into four classes according to their cultivation level: beginner, intermediate, advanced, and graduation. These four classes corresponded to the four levels of Body Refinement.

Bai Cheng was now assigned to the beginner class, which had the largest number of students in the entire courtyard. Most of the people he knew were in the beginner class. The intermediate class had around seventy or eighty students. He noticed He Jingchao from the neighboring Hejia Village and Yu Qing from his own village were also there. The advanced class only had a dozen or so students, and Bai Cheng was surprised to find two women among them. The graduating class had only four students, but Bai Cheng couldn't find Yu Qing's bodyguard at a glance.

"Hmm? Strange, what's going on? I remember Yu Qing mentioned that this guard was already at the Great Perfection of the Body Refinement Realm, and was specifically sent by the village chief to protect Yu Qing. Could it be that they aren't among them?" Thinking of this, Bai Cheng searched through the crowd and found that Yu Qing and He Jinchao's guards were both beside them. Seeing this, Bai Cheng pondered, "It seems that they lied about their cultivation levels, or is there something else going on with this so-called graduating class?"

Thinking of this, Bai Cheng asked the people around him.

"Brother, may I ask, since only those at the Great Perfection of the Body Refinement Realm can enter this so-called graduating class, is it direct entry once one reaches the Great Perfection Realm, or is there another procedure?" The person being asked was named Dong Shaojie, from a fishing village.

"You're new here, right? This so-called graduating class is a bit special; everyone who enters the graduating class can only stay in the school for one month."

After hearing Dong Shaojie's words, Bai Cheng asked with some confusion, "A month?"

Dong Shaojie explained, "Yes, once you enter the graduating class, a physical fitness test will be arranged. If you have the physique, the school will send a letter to a large cultivation academy or sect, depending on where you choose. If you don't have the physique for cultivating spiritual energy, they will send a letter to a large government office for a job. After all, it's relatively easy to find a job if you're at the Great Perfection of Body Refinement."

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng looked towards Song Xian, who was standing beside Yu Qing in the distance.

Then he asked, "And them?...?"

After he finished speaking, Dong Shaojie followed Bai Cheng's gaze.

"Oh, you mean Song Xian? We all know he's at the Great Perfection of Body Refinement. Every year, the academy conducts a centralized test of the aptitude of Body Refinement students. This test is mandatory, just to prevent people like them from getting in."

After listening, Bai Cheng was still a little confused: "Then why is he still in the intermediate class?"

"You don't know this, but in addition to the annual centralized test, students can also apply for the test in advance. As long as they apply in advance, they will be promoted to a higher class. Conversely, if they do not take the test in advance, they will stay in the school for a full year. After a year, even if they want to stay here, the school will not allow it."

After listening to Dong Shaojie's explanation, Bai Cheng replied, "So that's how it is."

Soon, as the body-refining class progressed, each student received a body-refining manual. Bai Cheng opened it and exclaimed, "Hmm? Isn't this Yue Ling's manual?" The only difference was that this manual only had the first level. After all the body-refining manuals had been distributed, one of the two instructors at the front of the crowd began to speak.

"I am Zheng Tianzhuang, your body-refining instructor, and the person standing next to me is Qin Jinghan, your body-refining instructor. We will now teach you body-refining lessons."

After speaking, the two went to the front of the beginner and intermediate classes respectively. As their different commands rang out, the students began to perform the movements in unison. Meanwhile, the advanced students practiced on their own, as they were already familiar with everything.

The graduating students went back to their dormitories. That's right, the graduating students have their own dormitories. After all, they are already graduates. They are only staying in the school for a short period of time during this month, so the school provides accommodation without any burden.

As time went on, many students in the beginner class began to tire. This was because the instructor would pause after each command to check if the students' movements were correct and if they were applying enough force. Subsequently, many students gradually collapsed from exhaustion, but the instructor did not stop the commands and continued to call out the next movement.

Bai Cheng was now fully engaged, sweating profusely with every movement and exertion, yet he showed no signs of fatigue. Gradually, as more and more trainees collapsed from exhaustion, Dong Shaojie, a trainee nearby, also collapsed to the ground, his face covered in sweat and panting heavily.

Dong Shaojie glanced at Bai Cheng and said, "Wow, brother, I didn't expect you to be so amazing. I couldn't finish one set, but you're almost done with two sets."

Bai Cheng also heard this, but he didn't think there was anything wrong with it. After all, he spent his days in the cave either rushing against the waterfall or practicing the Body Refining Technique. Now, he could easily do two or even three sets. Gradually, as time passed, Zheng Tianzhuang had finished two cycles of the first level of the Body Refining Technique. At this point, less than a fifth of the people were still standing there; most of them were exhausted after completing the second cycle. Zheng Tianzhuang noticed Bai Cheng at this moment and then went to his side.

He had noticed Bai Cheng long ago, but he didn't expect this student who had just enrolled today to have such a solid foundation.

"I remember you just enrolled this year, right? I didn't expect you to have such a solid foundation. You're very good."

After saying that, Zheng Tianzhuang patted Bai Cheng on the shoulder, turned around and left, continuing to shout slogans as he went. As the third slogan ended, less than ten people remained standing on the field, while the rest slumped to the ground, panting heavily.

Meanwhile, the intermediate class in the distance went through the same steps. However, Bai Cheng noticed that most of the intermediate class students persisted after completing the movements three times, which surprised him somewhat. "Is there really such a big difference between the early and middle stages of the Body Refinement Realm?" Just then, Zheng Tianzhuang came to the front of the group of students and said, "Cultivating the Body Refinement Technique is not just about cultivation; it can also indirectly reveal your aptitude. However, anyone in the early stage of the Body Refinement Realm can complete one repetition. Being able to complete two repetitions in a short time indicates that your aptitude is acceptable. If you can complete three repetitions in a short time, it means that your aptitude is good, and your advancement speed will be faster than others. But if you can complete five repetitions in a short time, it means that your aptitude is exceptional, and your advancement will be much faster than others."

Upon hearing this, the trainees all turned their attention to the people standing there. Although the instructor hadn't called out five times, these people were at least of good quality. As for whether there were any outstanding individuals among them, it was unknown.

After all, this is only the Body Refining Realm. No matter how good your physical aptitude is, if you can't cultivate spiritual energy, then it's all for nothing. On the contrary, even those with poor physical aptitude, as long as they can cultivate spiritual energy in the end, will still leave these Body Refining Realm Great Perfection people far behind. The academy's instructors have long been used to this kind of thing, so they don't pay too much attention to how good one's aptitude is in the Body Refining Realm.

Soon it was noon. The school provided a meal at noon, and there was also a break time. As long as you returned to the school before the afternoon classes started, you could do so. Bai Cheng arrived at the school cafeteria and found that the food was very ordinary, just like what he had seen in the small restaurant. Bai Cheng then got a meal and sat down to eat.

Soon, two people walked over from the opposite side. One of them was Dong Shaojie from earlier. Dong Shaojie greeted Bai Cheng and sat down opposite him.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Dong Shaojie, and I come from a fishing village. The man next to me is Zhao Xiaoming, who also comes from a fishing village like me. Brother, what's your name?"

"Oh... my name is..." Before Bai Cheng could finish speaking, a clear voice came from afar.

"Brother Bai Cheng." Yue Ling quickly walked over and sat down next to Bai Cheng, which surprised the two people opposite her.

"Hmm? Isn't this Miss Ling'er?"

After Yue Ling sat down next to Bai Cheng, she said, "His name is Bai Cheng. Um... he fled here from his hometown a while ago. Since he was unfamiliar with the place, my father took pity on him and let him stay at my house temporarily."

After hearing the character description Yue Ling gave him, Bai Cheng awkwardly replied, "Um... that's how it is."

While pondering, Dong Shaojie said, "I see, Bai Cheng?"

Meanwhile, at another table some distance away, several people, all dressed in elegant attire and exuding an air of scholarly refinement, glared angrily at Bai Cheng and his companion after seeing Yue Ling and Bai Cheng so intimate.

"Why is Yue Ling hanging out with several body-refining students?" The speaker was named Li Cai.

After he finished speaking, a man sitting next to him showed anger on his face, and his hands clenched involuntarily. Then he suddenly stood up and walked towards Bai Cheng and the others.

Bai Cheng, who was eating, saw the newcomer and asked, "May I ask what brings you here, sir?"

The newcomer was Fu Wenhao, a member of a scholarly family in Wuling Town, whose family members were all officials. He was also one of Yue Ling's suitors. Although Yue Ling's appearance couldn't compare to that of a peerless beauty, she was still quite outstanding for her age. He greeted Bai Cheng with refined manners, then addressed Yue Ling, saying, "Ling'er, we are but weak scholars. How can we be compared to warriors? Even if we were to try and be mentioned in the same breath, wouldn't we become a laughingstock? Why not gather with us scholars?"

After hearing this, Dong Shaojie also looked displeased: "Hey~ Fu Wenhao, are you sick again? Yue Ling and Bai Cheng live under the same roof, how can you say they are not on par with martial artists?"

Upon hearing this, Fu Wenhao became even more anxious and said to Yue Ling, "How can a woman who has not yet become a nun live with a man?" After hearing the words of the person in front of him, Bai Cheng also felt that the scene was somewhat familiar.

He suddenly remembered meeting Zhao Bo at the school gate a month ago. Only this time, the one pursuing Yue Ling was this man named Fu Wenhao.

At this moment, Yue Ling had become impatient. She slammed her hand on the table, stood up abruptly, and said to the man named Fu Wenhao, "Hey Fu Wenhao, can you stop buzzing around me like a fly? I told you I don't like you." Yue Ling's voice was clear and loud, and everyone eating in the cafeteria could hear it, and everyone looked over.